Friday, January 17, 2014

Palais de la Justice

Friday, we found ourselves on île de la cité after having eaten at a delicious restaurant facing the Seine, close to the Place Dauphine. The restaurant's specialty : blanquette de veau and the fact that many detectives in policiers would eat at places similar to it as they took a break from solving their cases.

We began our tour at the, nearly finished with restorations, St. Chapelle - a tribute to St. Louis and the French royalty of the time, as well as a place worthy of housing relics such as the crown of thorns of Jesus' crucifixion. The impressive mosaic and stained glass windows told stories of the divine right and heritage of the royal family.

We followed the visit with an introduction to the French justice system, even snagging a few seats inside the famous Cour d'Appel. To finish, we stayed to watch and listen to the lawyers and judges in some of the open courtroom circuits.